Men’s June Newsletter 2018

It’s been a slightly quieter month in June for running but many of you have turned out and smashed events local and afar. The weather has been beautiful but not ideal for running at all! We’ve had team GB attempts, copious amounts of malt loaf consumed, multiple 5 mile club champs entries, trophies won, international mud photo stardom and medals galore….

New Members:

We haven’t had any new male members this month so I would like to take this opportunity to focus on a few newer members who have done particularly well since joining the club (not wishing to miss anyone out). Dave Jones and Jason Skelton have both smashed their Micky Edwards running and I’m sure being a part of GBRC has something to do with that so well done guys! Also Jason earned himself a bronze standard for 5k so more standards to come soon I’m sure! Tom Colsell ran his first ever 5 mile race (pb) in June to earn a place on the club champs – so much potential in this boy well done, keep it up Tommy.

Races:

The first weekend in June was an absolute scorcher… so when better to hold a 24 hour running event?!!? A huge chunk of the club turned out for HR24 which was another huge success and by success I don’t necessarily mean people’s individual or team running results, I’m referring to the organisation, camaraderie and spirit of the entire event. It really was a pleasure to see so many of you pulling together and supporting one another in what was a very challenging physical event. A special mention to Paul Carlisle who, for the whole 24hours (as a solo runner too) remained calm and collected and always wore a smile. A final mention to Keith Scrivener who, along with wife Meryl, chalked up his 148thmarathon by running 27.5miles. Outstanding stuff and I know before long you will be hitting 150. I think quite a lot of malt loaf was consumed at this event for some strange reason…. Steve Black did the club proud to keep many of you in a condition to keep running so thank you to him.

The Kirton Friday 5 saw Jack ‘Wixy’ Wicks run another pb however this doesn’t qualify you for another ROM im afraid! The Maisie run was another fantastic event organised by resident Brian Telford. Well done to all who turned out to raise money for charity and we look forward to the 2019 date being announced. This is always a popular GBRC choice event.

Andulu ‘beer monster’ Stephens decided to tackle the Stour Valley Marathon which unless someone takes over organising the event, will run one final time in 2019. Andulu ran an awesome time to earn himself that coveted horse shoe trophy. Just a side note on this marathon….. I’ve ran this myself and found it to be absolutely unforgiving and one of the toughest things I’ve done. For many of you this event won’t be a problem but this is aimed at those who’s running ability is comparable to my own. The organisers set a rule that you must have ran a trail marathon before SVM or ran a road mara in 5 hours and I can contest that this is an outright correct rule to go by. I finished last in 6:57 the year I did it, 3 minutes within the cut off. Its hilly, usually hot, self-navigating and brutal. It is also one of the most beautiful and rewarding events I have ever done and urge everyone to give it a go in 2019 if you feel this is something you would like to accomplish. For those that have participated in the ‘GBRC trail fun run’ at Newtons Farm the last 2 years then this is 9 miles of the SVM…this is also ran as an official event called the Border 9 organised by Mid Essex Casuals and I would recommend doing this as training. You will love it 🙂. Side note over. Paul Blackwell coming back from injury completed the Dambusters marathon with a very tasty medal at the end…. marathon 150 isn’t far (I believe at the time of writing this report you are on no.149). I look forward to reading about your next race Paul.

I don’t usually speak of parkrun but Paul Hollidge whilst on holiday decided to run one in Canada which is awesome and one many of us wont be in a position to do. He also completed the Niagra Falls half marathon whilst on that side of world…sounds like a great holiday and I hope he takes me with him next time!

Mark Crittenden who loves an OCR and getting muddy, took on the Splat Quack and Go event. His photo has even won the best muddy shot of the event and will now be used for promotional purposes around the globe:

Mud glory – Mark’s photo is set for international stardom

Charlie Keitch finished first place by 41 seconds at the Suffolk Trail Festival to take home a rather nice trophy – great stuff well done Charlie:

1st place for Charlie K at the Suffolk Trail Fest

Andulu ran another….yes ANOTHER 5k pb at Wythenshaw parkrun…. He tells me it’s down to beer…. Plus his genetic ability to convert beer to a substance that breaks down lactic acid whilst running.

Capel 5 which is another popular event had a good GBRC turnout. It was great to see Mark Ross returning to running in a Bentley vest. We had stellar performances from Tommy Colsell as mentioned earning a pb and club champs spot, Paul Davison ran to a silver standard and Eric Shaw and Frank Gardiner both finished first in their age categories and earned a club champs spot – well done to all for leading by example.

Bury St. Edmunds Friday 5 saw Paul Connell continue his fine form despite Achilles injury to smash a pb and impressively only 4 seconds off a gold standard. Matt Jones entered the Star Runners (episode IV) lapped challenge event along the Thames to take home a lovely medal. I hope they run episode V next year because I’ll be entering! Medal picture below in medal of the month shortlisting.

A small mention to Frank Gardiner who has completed all the Friday 5s to date as the sole male GBRC member so well done to him! I hope you smash the GBRC Friday 5.

Micky Edwards:

Heat 3 results are now available to view on the club website and Facebook…there is one race left on July 18thso please men, come out in force and smash that pb! Points mean prizes!!!! It looks like Dave Jones is doing very well points-wise but can anyone catch him?! Let’s make sure one of the men wins this year!!!!!

I wanted to thank Chris Warren who has been steadily stepping back during the series so Mick and myself can learn the process and hopefully deliver you the event in 2019 without drama. So I’ll be asking for volunteers for the last race a week or so before and Mick is doing the timing….i hope the blood is lost from his fingers like they are mine during the setting off of runners. Thanks to all who have been patient whilst we put you in order before setting off ….you have been kind. Finally….Phil Presland….an unsung hero who performs some spreadsheet magic each heat to calculate position, points, prizes. Thanks guys.

Club Champs:

The 5 mile distance was very popular for club champs entries! I just wanted to thanks Paul and Sarah for keeping club champs updated its very much appreciated. Congrats to the following for earning a place on the club champs during June (taken from the champs spreadsheet updated 27/6)):

Tom Colsell: 5mile 41:56 (Junior)

Charlie Keitch: 5mile 31:00 (Senior)

Paul Davison: 5mile 33:21 (Male40)

Frank Gardiner: 5mile 39:23 (Male60)

Eric Shaw: 5mile 39:35 (Male70)

Training:

Caroline and Mick have produced another well thought out training plan for the following months including pyramid, tempo, drill training etc. that will complement your training and races. Please check the website for more information and do remember to check the training details when posted weekly by Graham – you can see much more detail on what the session will actually be.

The groups going out on the roads on Wednesday sessions are getting very large so we urge you stick together as much as you can and come straight back when the whistle is blown, and on sessions such as fartlek its important you return to the last runner which is integral to managing the group size. There has been suggestion about splitting the groups up but we are keen to run as one club as much as we can. It has been suggested that if you hear 3 sharp whistle blows then this will signal a car is approaching and for everyone to stop and move aside whilst we wave the car through.

A final thought…..If we are congregating on pavements whilst doing a session or waiting to set off for Micky Edwards just be mindful that pedestrians may be trying to pass. We want to keep everyone happy and as a club I think GBRC do this very well.

Injury:

Just a mention around injury. We are entering a period where many people have been training hard and entering events and the likelihood for injury is peaking….with that in mind I think everyone should take care of what’s most important. That’s you. Don’t feel the pressure to participate in an event if you don’t feel ready, take your time to recover, book a massage and go about it the right way. If you’re injured, then people will understand even it’s a team event like Ekiden. We have all done something silly (myself included) where we haven’t wanted to waste a race entry…but you know what, in the long term you will get back to running faster and be stronger for it. Have a look to see if you can defer a race, unfortunately there’s usually a fee but this is better than getting further injured….also a race will usually run again the following year so don’t fret… race envy is real but all your friendly GBRC members are around you to support so don’t worry. Injury is temporary.

Beautiful medals last month and many do seem to come from challenge events but my favourite and winner is:Hare & Tortoise Hong Kong Phooey

GBRC Friday 5:

Russ thanks you all for offering to volunteer at the Friday 5 race and that he will be sending out marshall duties very soon. Paul Carlisle has confirmed that everyone wanting to run will be running. We can only do this because so many of you wonderful members have offered to volunteer…so THANK YOU! Those that are running will be expected to help with the Junior race first as Vicky and Marion need 30+ volunteers for that alone. Please bring cake for the Friday5 as we are known for our cake almost as much as we’re known for our awesome races.

Other News:

We have a brand new GBRC half marathon promotional video made by Mick and Marion’s son, Callum. Please visit the website and have a look – its bloody good and replaces the dated previous version. Thanks Callum!

Barbara has introduced the new GBRC light weight jackets and they are lovely. £17 each which is a real bargain. Thanks to Barbara for all her efforts with the kit – what would we do without you!

I wanted to commiserate Steve Black who missed out on a Team GB place at the Leeds ITU Triathlon in June. He missed out on a spot by a mere 90mins but ….all was well when he caught up on some sleep in the curry house afterwards:

Steve Black: Zzzzzzzzzz

Upcoming races:

Here’s a few events taking place in July, many of which you can still enter:

July 1: Running Colchester Pathway Paradise Orbital HM / Nayland 10k

July 4: Running Colchester ‘run the elephant’ 5k

July 6: GBRC Friday 5

July 7: The Summer Stumble (10 miles)

July 8: Gosfield Tri / Felsted 10k

July 14: Essex 100 Ultra marathon

July 15: Ekiden

July 18: ME5

July 25: Geoff Day 5k

July 29: Ride 100

Please note:

*no July GBRC trail run – returns Aug 19 in Ramsey*

The memorial Geoff Day 5k will take place the week after the last Micky Edwards, ran on the same route. We encourage as many people to get involved for this event to remember an absolute legend of the club. Donny and Ryan Day are confirmed to be running. We will also be asking for volunteers for this race in due course. Please visit the website for more info:

We can now share the upcoming XC dates so please save them to your diary!

Springfield 28 October
Witham 4 November
Harwich 25 November
Ipswich 13 January
Hadleigh 10 February
Halstead 17 February

Due to a clash on October 28 we are having to rearrange or postpone the GBRC 10 mile race… Russ will send out more information in due course.

ROM:

We’ve seen some great results this month from Andulu, Paul Davison and Charlie Keitch especially…as well as all their performances over the recent months. All men are running strong but in the end it was an easy choice for Scott and I. This man has somehow found the ability to run well even when injured and whilst coming back from injury…he has hit pb and club champs when ‘training’ for his upcoming ‘Race to the Stones’ ultramarathon. He’s been heard to say on many occasions he’s just ‘testing out’ an injured body part, to go on and smash a race. This month he has gained a club champs spot, ran a buggy-best at parkrun, team first place at HR24, 3rd(MV40) at Stowmarket Friday 5 and he won the Suffolk Trail Festival. Charlie with all your efforts this month and recently…this is your month!